1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to behavior reinforcement systems in general and in particular to a gaming apparatus, a method of operating a gaming apparatus and a method of modifying the behavior of the user of the apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
In many fields of endeavor, it is often desirable to encourage a user to participate at a predetermined rate. For example in the field of gaming devices, it is desirable by both on the part of the establishment responsible the gaming machine and the individual user for the user to play at a high rate.
For the establishment, it is known that gaming devices on average typically collect more revenue than they award to the user during the time they are played. Therefore, the more times a gaming device is played, the greater revenue generating potential it has for the establishment. For the user, gaming devices offer enjoyment because they are fun and exciting to play through the opportunity to be provided a monetary award. The user may know that the more times they play the game in a given time frame the greater their chance of an award during that time frame.
However as many gaming machines utilize a random number generator, it is known that such methods of determining awards results are determined on a variable ratio schedule. In a variable ratio schedule, the player is reinforced with an award or other positive result on average one in every predetermined number of tries. Due to the use of variable ratio schedules in conventional gaming systems, the user's increasing rate of play will not often result in increasing the rate of being awarded by the gaming system in relation to number of tries. Accordingly, the user's increasing rate of play may or may not result in being rewarded at any moment of play in relation to the number of tries. Therefore, in conventional gaming systems there are unpredictable incentives for the player to play at a determined and sustained higher rate. The effects of these schedules are due to the contingencies which prevail at the moment of reinforcement under it. For example, although a player may play at a generally higher rate over a period of time, their play may fluctuate between high and low rates. The use of a variable ratio schedule may mean that any reward granted to such player is not awarded during a time during which the player is playing at a high rate and may therefore not have the desired effect of encouraging a sustained high rate of play. Such schedules are, in other words rather inaccurate ways of reinforcing rates of play.